Refrigerating apparatus with air baffle



Feb. 21, 1956 L, J. MANN ET AL REFRIGERATING APPARATUS WITH AIR BAFFLE Filed July 26, 1952 IN VEN TOR. Leonard J. Mann John M. Murphy BY Verl 0s G, Sharp United States Patent 2,735,274 REFRIGERATING APPARATUS WITH AIR RAFFLE Leonard J. Mann, John M. Murphy, and Verlos G. Sharpe, Dayton, Ohio, assignors to General Motors Corporation, Dayton, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application July 26, 1952, Serial No. 301,138 Claims. (Cl. 62-403) This invention relates to refrigerating apparatus and more particularly to an arrangement for preventing the drainage of condensate onto the contents of a household refrigerator.

One of the big problems in designing a household refrigerator is that of maintaining high relative humidities within the space for preserving fruits, vegetables and other unfrozen foods without allowing moisture to condense on the ceiling of the refrigerated space and thereafter drip onto the stored food. Various types of air deflecting baffles have been used to prevent condensation on the ceiling but these have either taken up too much valuable space or have been otherwise objectionable. Some, for example, have caused condensation to drip from the baflles onto the food.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved arrangement for preventing the dripping of water without unduly interfering with the air circulation within the refrigerated space.

Another object of this invention is to provide an air deflecting baflle which also serves to effectively dispose of any moisture which might condense thereon.

The problem of condensation prevention differs with different refrigerator designs and is greatly influenced by the location of the evaporator. An air directing baflie which might work with one evaporator design may not have any useful effect when used with a. different evaporator design or location. It is an object of this invention to provide an air deflecting baflie which may be used in a refrigerator of the type in which a plate type evaporator is horizontally disposed adjacent the upper rear portion of the refrigerator space.

Still another object of this invention is to provide an improved arrangement for transferring condensate which migh form on one side of a baffle to the opposite side of the baflie.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred form of the present invention is clearly shown.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a schematic vertical sectional view showing the general arrangement of the parts within a home type refrigerator;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary sectional view on an en larged scale showing the relationship between the plate type evaporator and the air deflecting bafile;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary elevational view (with parts broken away) of the baflie looking in the direction of the plate evaporator which is mounted behind the bafile; and

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially on line 44 of Figure 3.

Referring now to the drawing wherein a preferred embodiment of the invention is disclosed, reference numeral designates a household refrigerator having a frozen food storage chamber 12 and an unfrozen food chamber 14 and a machinery compartment 16. A main door 18 is provided in accordance with standard practice for obtaining access to the compartments 12 and 14. An inner door 20 serves to close the frozen food storage compartment 12 so as to prevent needlessly admitting room air into the frozen food storage chamber 12 when one only wishes to insert or remove something from the compartment 14.

The refrigerating system used for maintaining the desired temperature in the compartments 12 and 14 comprises a conventional sealer motor-compressor unit 30 which serves to discharge compressed refrigerant into an air cooled condenser 32 located in machinery compartment 16 and evaporators 34 and 38. The condensed refrigerant is fed to the first primary evaporator 34 through a capillary tube type of restrictor 36. The refrigerant leaving this primary evaporator section 34 is conveyed to a primary plate type evaporator 38 which is mounted in the upper rear portion of a food storage compartment 14. The vaporized refrigerant returns to the inlet of the motor-compressor unit 30 through the line 40. A conventional secondary refrigerant system (not shown) could be used if desired for transferring heat from the walls of the compartment 14 to one or the other of the evaporators 34 and 38.

For purposes of illustrating the invention, there is shown an arrangement in which the refrigerant flows through the eveporators 34 and 38 in series whereas certain aspects ofthe invention are equally applicable to other types of refrigerant flow circuits. In the particular illustration shown, a horizontally disposed tray or bathe 425 is slidably supported directly beneath the frozen food compartment 12. The bottom surface of the tray 42; in effect constitutes a ceiling of the food storage compartment 14. Baflles or trays of this type are now commonly used in household refrigerators and are frequently used to support sliding drawers and the like which may be suspended downwardly from the bottom of the bafiie.

In certain parts of the country Where the humidity is high, it is a problem to prevent the condensation of moisture on the bottom side of the baffle 42 or any drawer (not shown) which might be mounted directly beneath the baffle 42. The accumulation of moisture on any such surface above the food is very objectionable in that it tends to drip onto the food in the compartment.

We have discovered that the problem of condensation may be largely solved by providing a bathe 50 directly in front of the plate type evaporator 38 where it will take up very little storage space. This batfle is especially designed so as not to materially interfere with the desired circulation of air over the evaporator 38 and it is so constructed that any condensation which might form thereon will not drip onto the food stored therebelow. As best shown in Figure 3 of the drawing, the upper portion of the baflie has no openings other than the relative ly small narrow slits of slots 52, whereas the lower portion of the baflie is provided with large cut away portions 54 which allow for the necessary amount of air flow.

Since moisture will condense on the upper part of the baflie it is necessary to direct such moisture downwardly into the back wall 60 of the cabinet. In order to accomplish this drainage a plurality of narrow V- shaped slits 52 have been provided which serve to direct the condensate down to the apex of the V so as to cause the condensate to drain down along the ribs 56 which are formed between the cut away portions 54.

Any condensate flowing down the front side of the ribs 56 would tend to drain into any container which might inadvertently be placed up against one or more of the ribs and for that reason it is important to direct the flow of condensate to the back side of the ribs rather than the front side. In order to accomplish this the lower extremities 60 of the tongues formed by cutting the V-shaped slits 52 are offset towards the back side of the bathe as best shown in Figures 2 and 4. By virtue of the above described construction any condensate which forms on the upper front surface of the baflie 50 willdrain down to the tip 61 of each of the tongues and will be caused to be transferred from the front side of the baiiie to the rear side thereof.

Since most all of the condensation which takes place takes place on the upper portion of the baiiie, it is obvious that the above described construction serves to effectively direct the main body of condensate away from the front side of the bafiie and onto the back where it drains down onto the rear wall of the storage space. The rear wall 60 of the storage space then serves to convey the condensate down towards the bottom of the food compartment. A drain 76 is provided in the bottom of the food compartment so as to discharge the excess moisture onto a pan or tray 72 mounted above the condenser 32. The condensate evaporates in the pan 72 and is discharged into the air flowing through the machinery compartment in accordance with well known practice.

The upper edge of the baffle 50 is removably held in place by a pair of mounting clips 76 each of which has its one end arranged to hook onto an offset portion 78 provided on the baiiie 50 and has its other end bolted to the upper edge of the evaporator 38. The lower end of the bafiie may be removably held in place in any suitable manner such as by means of the studs 80 carried by the rear wall of the food storage compartment. The

bafde 50 is provided with a pair of forwardly extending offsets 82 which wedge behind the heads of the studs 80.

While the form of embodiment of the invention as herein disclosed constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, as may come within the scope of the claims which follow.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. In a refrigerator having a food storage compartment and a frozen food compartment, a first evaporator for cooling said frozen food compartment, a second evaporator for cooling said food storage compartment, said frozen food compartment being disposed above said food storage compartment, means for supplying liquid refrigerant to said evaporators, said second evaporator being disposed adjacent the upper rear portion of said food storage compartment, an air directing baffle supported in front of said second evaporator, said baffle having openings provided adjacent its lower edge for the passage of air through the lower portion of the baffle, means for directing condensate forming on the upper portion of said bat-lie above said openings away from the upper edges of said openings, said last named means comprising means for transferring condensate from the front side of the baffie towards the back side of the baffle, and means for directing the condensate from the lower edge of said baffle onto the rear wall of said food storage compartment.

2. An air deflector baffle comprising a plate like ele ment having a plurality of apertures spaced from the upper edge of said battle and separated from one another by vertical ribs, means for directing condensate forming on said bailie above said apertures to points between said apertures, said last named means comprising substantially V-shaped slits having the vertex thereof disposed above said ribs and having the upper ends thereof overlying said apertures.

3. An air deflector baflie comprising a plate like element having a plurality of apertures spaced from the upper edge of said baffle and separated from one another by vertical ribs, means for directing condensate forming on said baffle above said apertures to points between said apertures, said last named means comprising substantially V-shaped slits having the vertex thereof disposed above said ribs and having the upper ends thereof overlying said apertures, one arm of each V-shaped slit being shorter than the other and partially subtending the longer arm of the adjacent V-shaped slit.

4. In a refrigerator having a food storage compartment and a frozen food compartment, a first evaporator for cooling said frozen food compartment, a second evaporator for cooling said food storage compartment, said frozen food compartment being disposed above said food storage compartment, means for supplying liquid refrigerant to said evaporators, said second evaporator comprising a plate type evaporator located adjacent the upper rear portion of said food storage compartment, and an air directing baflie supported in front of said plate type evaporator in spaced relationship to said plate type evaporator and cooperating with the rear wall of said food storage compartment to form an air duct through which air may flow in thermal exchange relationship with both sides of said plate type evaporator, said bafile having a plurality of openings adjacent its lower edge for the passage of air through the lower portion of the baille, said openings having slanted upper edges, and means for preventing condensate water condensing on said bafile from dripping onto food in said food storage compartment.

5. In a refrigerator having a food storage compartment and a frozen food compartment, a first evaporator for cooling said frozen food compartment, a second evaporator for cooling said food storage compartment, said frozen food compartment being disposed above said food storage compartment, means for supplying liquid refrigerant to said evaporators, said second evaporator being disposed adjacent the upper rear portion of said food storage compartment, an air directing bathe supported in front of said second evaporator, said bafie having openings provided adjacent its lower edge for the passage of air through the lower portion of the balfie, means for directing condensate forming on the upper portion of said bathe above said openings to the sides of said openings, and means for directing the condensate from the lower edge of said baffie onto the front surface of the lower portion of the rear wall of said food storage compartment for reevaporization within said food storage compartment.

References Cited in the file of this patent V UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 23,058 Bronaugh Dec. 14, 1948 1,734,127 Hamilton Nov. 5, 1929 1,887,313 Larkin Nov. 8, 1932 1,979,590 Vretman Nov. 6, 1934 2,099,165 Henderson Nov. 16, 1937 2,218,208 Hopkins Oct. 15, 1940 2,291,559 Philipp July 28, 1942 2,346,184 Pedigo Apr. 11, 1944 2,416,354 Shoemaker Feb. 25, 1947 2,593,370 Warren Apr. 15, 1952 

